Two-Way Immersion for the Next Generation: Models, Policies, and Principles

The potential of TWI to close the achievement gap for English language learners and to provide both native English speakers and native partner-language speakers with access to a high-quality education with positive academic, language, and sociocultural outcomes is clear. In this article, I argue that the realization of this potential for TWI programs today and in the future requires TWI educators to contextualize their practices beyond the dualities of the program. Specifically, the article discusses how the increased cultural and linguistic diversity of TWI students in the program questions the native speaker/nonnative speaker dichotomy. Further, it argues that the strict separation of the languages for instruction needs to be contextualized in light of the holistic nature of bilingualism.